US officials to talk about Russia banning poultry imports

An US delegation will arrive in Moscow this month for discussions on poultry imports from the United States after Russia tightened its regulations, Russia's chief sanitary official said.

Russia introduced a law on January 1 strictly limiting the amount of chlorine that can be used in the processing of poultry, effectively banning all imports from the United States.

The head of consumer watchdog Rospotrebnadzor, Gennady Onishchenko, said on Moscow radio that the US delegation would arrive on January 17.

The new requirements, which apply to both imports and meat processed in Russia, state that the amount of chlorine in the solution used for the processing of poultry meat should not exceed the level set for drinking water, 0.3-0.5 milligrams per litre.

They also require that the fluid that separates when defrosting the meat should not exceed 4% of the total weight of the bird.

Experts say the new regulations first and foremost affect imports from the United States, where chlorine has been used as the primary anti-microbial treatment for a quarter of a century.